The New York Rangers had two seasons they would like to forget for a long time. From missing the playoffs in the 2024-25 season to somehow having an even worse campaign by finishing in last place in the Eastern Conference. But after an active offseason, the hope is that general manager Chris Drury built a strong enough roster to make it back to the playoffs and eventually become viable Stanley Cup contenders like they were a couple of years ago.
If Rangers fans know one thing, it's that as long as Igor Shesterkin is starting in net, their chances of winning are stronger than they would be without him. Shesterkin has been the perfect successor to Henrik Lundqvist. It goes to show that the Rangers fanbase are living in goalie paradise, so to speak.
Even though Shesterkin does take a backseat in terms of league-wide attention to the likes of Andrei Vasilevskiy, Connor Hellebuyck, and Sergei Bobrovsky, he is still thought of highly in the hockey world outside of New York.
Igor Shesterkin earns praise from former player in The Athletic's NHL players tiers rankings
The Athletic recently published their NHL player tiers after evaluations of the roster while consulting a panel of 20 people who work in the hockey world. For Shesterkin, he was listed in the second-tier, which is designated for franchise players (top 30 in the game, best on the roster). One former player praised Shesterkin, saying that if he were picking the player that gives them the best chance of winning a Stanley Cup, they'd pick the Rangers goalie.
“I still have Shesterkin as my best,” the former player told The Athletic. “Look, I wouldn't put him as a Tier 1 guy either, but maybe the only one that would be 2A.
“If you asked me to pick a guy for my team right now that is gonna give me the best chance to win the Cup, that's the guy I would go with.”
That is as strong of an endorsement you'd want as a player in any professional sport. For those curious, no goalie made it into the top tier, which is designated for a top 10 player in the league. However, Shesterkin is one of the top ranked goalies in the league, with Hellebuyck right beside him in the 2B tier. Ilya Sorokin of the New York Islanders and Vasilevskiy of the Tampa Bay Lightning are in the 2C tier.
Shesterkin may not have reached the Stanley Cup Final yet in his career, like Lundqvist did in 2014 and Mike Richter did so in 1994, but he has had some close chances. In 2022, the Rangers went on a bit of a Cinderella run in the playoffs to reach the Eastern Conference Finals, only to lose in six games to the Lightning. Then, in 2024, the Rangers won the President's Trophy for the best record in hockey, only to lose to the Florida Panthers in six games in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Despite the lack of a Stanley Cup Final appearance on his resume, his playoff numbers are impressive. Through four playoff runs, Shesterkin has a .928 save percentage and a 2.41 goals allowed average. That is what you want from your starting goalie when you are hoping to win the Stanley Cup.
The clock is ticking for Rangers not to waste Igor Shesterkin's prime
The Rangers know that they'd be in a much more dire situation if they didn't have Shesterkin on their team and under contract. It's challenging to find a quality starting goalie, let alone one of the best in the game at that. That's why you are seeing a variety of teams trying to trade for Hellebuyck, who requested off of the Winnipeg Jets. If the Rangers didn't have Shesterkin, they may very well be one of the teams trying to give up prospects and draft assets to acquire Hellebuyck.
The Rangers opted for a retool instead of a rebuild, believing they can put the past two seasons behind them and prove that they can contend for the Stanley Cup in the near future. But, the clock is ticking for them.
Shesterkin is under contract until the summer of 2032. However, with the increasing salary cap and the rise of lucrative contracts across the league, there is the chance the Rangers may have to give him a new deal. But, there is one thing the Rangers might have to worry about, and that's Shesterkin growing upset with the direction of the team if they continue to trend negatively. That could very well lead to a trade request. Hockey fans have already seen top players request trades off of their current teams. From Brady Tkachuk to Dylan Larkin to Hellebuyck. Rangers fans need to hope that's not the case down the road.
Drury has already taken some gambles this offseason in an effort to put a better team in front of Shesterkin. First, the defense has drastically improved on paper with the additions of Sean Durzi and Marcus Pettersson as New York's second pair behind Adam Fox and Vladislav Gavrikov. Not to mention, the third pair, at some point, could very well be Braden Schneider and fifth-overall pick Alberts Smits. Then, there's the sign-and-trade for Vegas Golden Knights winger Pavel Dorofeyev, which then resulted in a seven-year, $77 million contract. These moves were made in hopes that they can make it back to the playoffs out of a less brutal Metropolitan Division (as opposed to the Atlantic Division).
Even with the Rangers' standing across the league at a low, Shesterkin is still well-regarded ini the hockey world.
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